Space Panic

Space Panic is a 1980 arcade video game developed by Universal and released by Universal USA in the USA on November 1, 1980. Predating Nintendo's Donkey Kong, and lacking a jump mechanic, Space Panic was the first game involving climbing ladders between walkable platforms. The genre was initially labeled "climbing games", but later became known as platform games. The main character can move along platforms and climb the ladders between them. The goal is to dig holes in the platforms and lure aliens into them. Hitting a trapped alien with the shovel knocks them out of the hole and off the screen. In later levels, two or more holes must be lined up vertically in order to dispose of stronger aliens. There is a limited supply of oxygen, which acts as a timer.

Arcade Database ADB

MAME romset	panic
Title at ADB	Space Panic (version E)
Manufacturer	Universal
Year	1980
Genre	Platform / Run Jump
Players	2
MAME driver status	IMPERFECT

Artwork: ADB (Arcade Database); artwork © original manufacturer (Universal); snaps by ProgettoSnaps via ADB. Non-free, internal use only (hotlinked, not downloaded).

Scraping using Arcade Database by motoschifo · CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 · romset via Wikidata P2451 (mame-title+year) · fetched 2026-10-11 05:04 UTC · no fields filled (other sources take precedence)